Collapsible container.



J. WALLACE. COLLAPSIBLE CONTAINER. APPLICATION FILED APR.2, 1917.

Patented Aug. 28, 1917.

2 SHEETSSHEET l- J. WALLACE.

COLLAPSIBLE CONTAINER.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 2, 1917.

Patented Aug. 28, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Esra-93E: I

IN VEN TOR. X62444 fl x 4Z e,

WITNESS: za2- A TTORNE VF UNITED STATES PAT 'FFIYGE.

Jmns WALLACE, or OAKLAND, camronnm.

COLLAPSIBLE CONTAINER.

Specification of Letters latent.

Patented Aug. 28, 1917.

Application filefl April 2, 1917. Serial No. 159,061.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JAMES WAILACE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Oakland, in the county of Alameda and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Collapsible Containers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the class of 001- container is not in use, but which, when the container is brought to shape will, by this act, automatically separate and provide a surrounding dead air or insulating space, which is efiective in the preservation of the contents.

' To this end my invention consists in the novel container which I shall hereinafter fully describe, by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a plan of the outer shell sheet of my container.

Fig. 2 is a plan ofone of the inner shell sheets, of the container body.

Fig. 3 is a plan of the other of said sheets.

Figs. 4 and 5 are plan views of the inner shell end or fla sheets.

Fig. 6 is a pan, showing the assembling of the sheets of Figs. 1 to 5.

Fig. 7 is a cross section, enlarged, showing the container in its expanded form, including the spreading strips and the bracing strips. g

Fig. 8 is a broken, longitudinal section on the line 8-8 of Fig. 7, one end of the container being closed and the other end open, with its end flaps extended.

Fig. 9 is a plan view of the assembledouter and inner shells, showing a slight modification in the bracing. c

Fig. 10 is a cross section, of the modified container.

The outer shell of the container iscomposed of a, sheet 1 of card-board or other suitable material, and of such dimensions as may be required for the capacity of the container. It is fashioned as seen in Fig. 1, with three slits 2, extending inwardly from each end, said slits forming the four end flaps 3. At one side, the sheet has a body securing flap 4:, and the adjacent end i flaps 3 have finger hold cutsv 5.

The sheet 1 is creased, for bending, along the four longitudinal dotted lines 6, and

along the dotted cross lines 7. The creasing is best done by a weakened line due to cutting partially through the material. The inner shell of the container is formed of four sheets, as shown in Figs. 2, 3, 4; and 5. The sheet 8 of Fig. 2 is creased for bending along the dotted longitudinal lines shown, one line 9 being central, and a double, spaced line 10 and 10" being near each side edge, the inner creases 10 being adapted forbendmg in a direction opposite to the creases 10.

'The sheet 11 of Fig. 3 is similar to sheet 8 but has one side shorter than the other. This sheet is bent for creasing along the central longitudinal dotted line 12, and along the double, spaced, dotted side lines 13 and 13, similar to the creasing of sheet 8. These two sheets 8 and 11 form the body of the inner shell. shell are formed as follows :--In Fig. his shown the sheet 14, which forms one end of the inner shell, said sheetbeing transversely creased for bending, along the single dotted line 15 near one end, and along the double, spaced, dotted lines 16 and 16' near the other end, the crease 16 bending oppositely to the bending of the crease 16. Inv Fi 5 is shown the sheet 17 serving as the ot or end of the inner shell, said sheet 17 being transversely creased relatively oppositel' to the The ends of the inner creasing of the sheet 14, bythe sing e dotted line 18, and the double dotted lines 19 and 19'. Fi 6, shows the assembling of the sheets 0 the preceding figures. It will be seen that the sheet 8 of Fig. '2 is imposed upon the left hand portion of the outer shell sheet 1, its up er and lower edges being clear of the bending creases of the end flaps 3, while its inner edge is just clear of the central longitudinal crease line 6 of the sheet 1.

The sheet 11 of Fig. 3 iscorrespondingly imposed upon the right hand portion of sheet 1.

The sheets 8 and 11 are secured, as by gumming, to the'sheet 1, as shown in Fig. 7 The sheet 8 is gummed to sheet 1 at 8' by that portion of its border which lies outside its crease 10, and at its other border it is correspondingly gummed at 8". The sheet 11 is correspondingly gummed at 11 and 11. The end sheets 14 and 17 of Figs. 4 and 5, are imposed upon the finger hold flaps of sheet 1, and are gummed as shown in Fig. 8, at their respective inner ends, at 14' and 17 respectively, to the body of sheet 1 in the spaces left by the short portion of the inner shell sheet 11, and at their outer ends, they are gummed at 14. and 17 respectively, to the flaps.

In Fig. 7 are shown the spreading strips 20 which lie between the body portions of the two shells and which have the function of automatically separating or spacing said shells when the container assumes its final shape. These strips are alike, one on each side.

A description of one will suffice. It is creased for bending near one side and at the other side it is double creased for a double bending. At the former side it is gummed at 21 to the outer shell sheet, and thence it rigidly crosses the adj acent' crease line angles of the two shells and is gummed ,to the inner shell sheet, as shown at 22 in Fig. 7. Thus there is left between the two shells a. free portion 23 of the spreading strip 20 which, serving as a lever when the shell sheets are bent, causes the inner sheet to move inwardly away from the outer sheet and to form between them an insulating or dead air space. The strip 20, for bracing effect, is best continued and gummed at 24 along its other side or edge, to the outer shell 1. Other creased brace strips 25 having a Z shape, are interposed between the two shells, to stifien them. A like spreading effect of. the inner shell end sheets 14 and 17 is due to the gumming of the inner end of each sheet at 14 and 17, in Fig. 8, to the main bodyof sheet 1, inside the crease lines of the end flaps, in the space left by the shorterhalf of the sheet 11, so that said sheets thereby freely cross said end flap creases. Said sheets at their outer ends are gummed at 14 and 17 to the flaps, and thus when the flaps are bent into closing position, the sheets 14 and 17 must bend along their crease lines 16 and 19, which bending throws the sheets inwardly to form the dead air space, as shown at the left hand end in Fig. 8. Stiifening or bracing creased strips 26, Fig.. 8, of Z shape are also placed in this air space.

Fig. 7 shows clearly the dead air spaces of the body of the container. In this figure the body of the container is seen expanded for use. The securing flap 4 is bent over and is gummed down, while a separate reinforcing strip 27 is pasted over the angle, a similar strip 28 being pasted over the diagonally opposite angle. When the container is collapsed it lies fiat, being folded to half size along its reinforced angles 27 and 28.

To expand it for use it is first squeezed by pressure on its reinforced angles, until it assumes a rectangular shape. In this condition its inner shell is spaced from its outer shell, and its flaps lie extended and open at each end. The contents are then placed within the container. Thereupon those end fiaps which carry the sheets 14: and 17 are folded down over the ends, said sheets in so doing moving away from the flaps. Then the other end flaps are folded down and the container is complete.

The contents are now entirely surrounded by the insulating or dead air space.

In Fig. 8, one end is shown folded in to closed position, while the other end is still open, with its flaps extended, and the inner shell end sheet 17 lying fiat. All the crease lines act as hinges allowing the sheets and strips to lie fiat in one position, and to move at right angles in another position. The modification shown in Figs. 9 and 10 is essentially similar to the construction of the previous figures and is indicated by like numerals. The difference lies in the supplementary stifiening braces, which in the modification consist of tongues 29 cut from the inner shell sheets and bent outwardly to and gummed to the outer shell sheet.

I claim p 1. A collapsible container comprising an outer creased shell; an inner creased shell secured at opposite borders to the outer shell and otherwise free thereof; and intervening spreading instrumentalities disposed to serve as levers to separate the shells in the act of expanding the container.

2. A collapsible container comprising an outer creased shell; an inner creased shell secured at opposite borders to the outer shell and otherwise free' thereof; and intervening spreading members secured to opposite shell surfaces in such relation as to serve as levers to separate the shells in the act of expanding the container.

3. A collapsible container comprising an outer creased shell; an inner creased shell, secured at opposite borders to the outer shell and otherwise free thereof; and intervening creased spreading strips secured to opposite shell surfaces in such relation to the creased lines of the shells as to serve as levers to separate said shells in the act of expanding the container.

4. A collapsible container comprising an outer creased shell; an inner creased shell, secured at opposite borders to the outer shell and otherwise free thereof; intervening creased spreading strips secured to opposite shell surfaces in such relation to the creased lines of the shells as to serve as levers to separate said shells in the act of expanding the container, and creased bracing strips between and secured oppositely to said shells.

5; A collapsible container comprising an outer creased shell' an inner creased shell secured. at opposite borders to the outer shell and otherwise free thereof; and intervening creased spreading strips secured to opposite shell, surfaces on opposite sides of crease tainer, and creasedbracing strips between and secured oppositely to said shells.

7. A colla sible container comprising an outer creased shell, having end flaps; an inner creased shell consisting of separate sheets, two of said sheets being secured at opposite borders to the body portion of the outer shell, and two others of said sheets being secured at one border to said body portion and at the opposite border to a fla of the outer shell at each end, said inner she sheets being otherwise free; and intervening coacting spreading instrumentalities to separate the shells both in the body portion and the ends of the container in the act 0 panding said container.

' 8. A collapsible container comprising an outer creased shell, having .end flaps; an mner creased shell consisting ofv separate sheets, two of said sheets being secured at one extremity to one of the end flaps at each end and atthe other extremity to the body portion of the outer shell said' sheets being fexotherwise free and rigidly crossing the crease lines of the end flaps and servin as levers to separate the sheets from \the aps in the act of closing the latter: and two others of said sheets being secured at opposite extfemities to thebody portion of the outer shell and otherwise free thereof; and creased spreading strips between and secured at opposite extremities to opposing surfaces of the outer shell and said other two sheets and freely and rigidly crossing crease lines of said shell and sheets, to serve as levers to separate the sheets from the outer shell in the act 'of expanding the container.

9. A collapsible container comprising an outercreased shell, havin end flaps; an

inner creased shell consistlng of separate sheetsptwo of said sheets being secured at one extremity to one ofthe end flaps at each. end and at the other extremity to the body portion of the outer shell said sheets being otherwise free'and rigidly crossing the crease lines of the end flaps and serving as levers to separate the sheets from the flaps in the act of closing-the latter, and two others of said sheets being secured at opposite ex-' tremitiesto the body ,portion of 'the outer shell and otherwise free thereof; and creased spreading strips between and secured at opposite extremities to opposing surfaces of the outer shell andsaid other two sheets and freely and rigidly crossing crease lines of said shell and sheets,.to serve as levers to separate the sheets from the outer shell in the act of expanding the container, and creased bracing strips between said outer. and inner shells.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification inthe presence of 7 two subscribing witnesses.

' .JAMESWALLAOE.

Witnesses: a

WM'.' F. Boo'rn, D. B. Brows."- 

